LINCOLN - Beatrice’s Lady Orange doubles teams rolled over the competition Friday in the opening rounds of the Nebraska State High School Girls Tennis Championships at the Nebraska Tennis Center in Lincoln.
The No. 1 doubles team of Jamie Gay and Mallory Johnsen and the No. 2 doubles team of Amber Engler and Daleigh Fossler both entered Thursday competition as the top seeds in their divisions.
By the end of the day, both teams were assured of Top Four finishes and state medals.
After receiving first-round byes, both team picked up a pair of victories, earning the right to advance to Friday morning’s state semifinals.
At No. 1 doubles, Gay and Johnsen picked up a win over Omaha Roncalli’s Emily Cuva and Shelby Roh, 6-0, 6-0.
Gay and Johnsen came back to down Elkhorn’s Kelis Broekemeier and Katie Brokemeier, 6-2, 6-3.
With their wins, Gay and Johnsen were to face Omaha Skutt’s Christina Bolas and Julianne Kincaid in the semifinals.
Gay and Johnsen are playing “fantastic” tennis right now, Cook said.
“They destroyed Roncalli,” Cook said, “and didn’t have much problem with Elkhorn.”
Cook said Gay and Johnsen “looked” like the senior team they are and weren’t “pushed” Thursday, Cook said.
At No. 2 doubles, Engler and Fossler opened play with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Omaha Gross’ Meghan Zimmerman and Kacie Black.
In their second match, Engler and Fossler defeated Skutt’s Marie Krause and Margaret Camody, 6-1, 3-6, 7-5.
Engler and Fossler were to take on Omaha Duchesne’s Jennifer Engel and Kate Webb in the semifinals.
Like Gay and Johnsen, Cook said Engler and Fossler are playing well together right now.
“They (Engler and Fossler) pretty well had their way with Gross,” Cook said. “The big one was beating Skutt in three sets.”
Cook said the pair “dominated” Skutt in the first set, went up 3-0 in the second set but lost it 6-3 and then came back to win in the third set.
“We had three or four match points, but couldn’t put them away,” Cook said.
Fossler ended up serving out the match.
The Lady Orange lost both their singles matches in the first round.
At No. 1 singles, Beatrice’s Shelby Lauritsen lost to Wilber-Clatonia’s Katelyn Koll, 6-1, 6-3.
At No. 2 singles, Beatrice’s Betsy Havekost fell to Waverly’s Taylor Flodman, 6-2, 6-4.
“Shelby and Betsy both competed very, very well,” Cook said.
Cook said Lauritsen played the No. 8 seed in the tournament and did a “fantastic job.”
“She (Lauritsen) lost the match, but she competed very well for a freshman,” Cook said.
Havekost’s first-round opponent was the “darkhorse” in the tournament, Cook said.
“She (Havekost) had a girl who just got hot right at the right time of the year,” Cook said. “It was just bad luck for us.”
As a team, Cook said the Lady Orange are out of the hunt for a state title, but will look to still have fun and win a few matches Friday.
Beatrice was tied for seventh after the first day of competition with 18 points.
Defending champion Omaha Skutt leads the field with 34 points, while Omaha Duchesne is in second with 32.
Cook said it will be a two-team battle for the state title Friday as both Skutt and Duchesne have three entries in the semifinals.
With some good luck Friday, Cook said the Lady Orange could still sneak in and take third place.
Wilber-Clatonia and Firth Norris each won one match Friday.
At No. 1 singles for Wilber-Clatonia, Koll defeated Beatrice’s Lauritsen, 6-1, 6-3.
Koll fell in the second round to Ogallala’s Emily Huckfeldt, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Also playing for the Lady Wolverines Friday were Kessa Rezny, who fell in the first round at No. 2 singles to Gretna’s Kayla Kivett, 6-2, 6-3; Katelin Rogers and Stephanie Morrissey, who fell in the first round at No. 1 doubles to Lexington’s Kristin White and Emilie Monter, 6-2, 6-1; Sydnee Kiesel and Kerri Murphey, who fell in the first round at No. 2 doubles to Kearney Catholic’s Ellen Baldwin and Janna Montgomery, 6-0, 6-1.
Firth Norris’ Jessica Traudt, at No. 2 singles, earned the Lady Titans first-ever win at the state tennis tournament, defeating Nebraska City’s Victoria McCord in the first round, 6-1, 7-5.
This season marked the first for the girls tennis program at Norris.
In the second round, Traudt fell to Elkhorn’s Jessica Hottman, 6-0, 6-1.
Also competing for the Lady Titans Friday were Melissa Siefert, who lost in the first round at No. 1 singles to Hershey’s Ivy Kuroki, 6-2, 6-2; Sarah Collins and Ann Collins, who lost in the first round at No. 1 doubles to Ralston’s Kortney Kosiski and Taylor Flairty, 6-1, 6-0; and Emily Rice and Alyssa Helmink, who lost in the first round at No. 2 doubles to Ralston’s’ Kirsten Placzek and Alex Sandiland, 6-2, 6-1.
Action in the state tennis tournament was scheduled to resume Friday at 9 a.m. with the semifinals in all divisions.
The third-place matches will be played at 11 a.m. with the finals slated for 1 p.m.